2. speakers
  3. 1301944364

Auto-Tech speakers

Hello everyone,

Some two weeks I bought a pair of Auto-Tech "The Mummy" speakers. They sport a 1"(throat) compression driver behind a some 13"-14" waveguide(of the Constant/Controlled Directivity type) and a 12" bass/midrange unit, all built into a heavily damped fiber glass cabinet. Crossover frequency is supposedly around 1kHz, and the system sensitivity is a stated 98dB

http://horns.pl/mummy.html

This is a somewhat new speaker brand, though the brand itself has existed for years delivering car parts and such, and I would therefore like to shed a little light on these speakers and my impressions of their sound - especially now that I'm as amazed about them as I am.

I know it might be a precarious matter telling about a speaker brand nobody, or at least very few have heard of - for what to expect, what are the details behind the "firm" and their initiative into building (horn-)speakers, and so on? Speaker cabinets made of fiber glass? Waveguides, and not least horns? The latter remark falls in the wake of some heated debate I've noticed here, in particular on horn speakers and their merits, or lack hereof. I'll not dive into this debate, but rather remain focused on a more limited context, that of my experiences with named "The Mummy" speakers, and possibly help creating a little attention towards them.

And no, I'm not affiliated in any way with Auto-Tech, nor have I been asked or prompted to share my views on these speakers. I simply do so for finding them extremely well sounding, and that at a very reasonable price(which in Denmark equals about US$5700).

Before the Mummy's I had in my stereo setup a pair S.P. Technology Timepiece 3.0, and before them the Raidho Ayra C-1.0. All of them wonderful speakers, but, as one might expect, also rather different sounding speakers. Looking back I could've tweaked my former speakers here mentioned into even better sonic realms, but what led on my search was based on a gut feeling that my quibbles - in relation to my listening room, setup in general, and personal taste - had root in the speakers, and I've since, with the recent acquisition of the Mummy's, been convinced that the route I took was the right one. I'm mentioning my former speakers(here mentioned) so that hopefully some of you can put into perspective my impressions on the Mummy's - should anyone care.

Very shortly on the Raidho's - that is, my impressions of them:

- Extremely well balanced, delicate, stress-free, highly resoluted, big-sounding, impressive bass especially for their size, wonderful soundstage, very "attentive" and "cool"(on the verge of being just a tad laid-back or even a little non-involving).

The S.P. Tech's:

- Wonderfully natural, cohesive-sounding, very very musical, dynamically ample, hair raising bass extension and wallop, great soundstage, slightly recessed in lower mid/upper bass, a tad rolled-off or "enclosed" in very upper regions, deep bass a little "loose"(in my room and setup at least).

The Mummy's have addressed named issues above in ways that makes them very complete loudspeakers. They're highly physical in presentation, wonderfully direct(without being in-your-face), sport an incredible soundstage making for an effective "vanishing act," extremely effortless, explosive and awe inspiring dynamics(both micro and macro), amazing detail and resolution, very fast and yet relaxed-sounding, tight and agile bass performance, very very cohesive-sounding - even holistic.

The above description of the Mummy's sound may appear "over the top," but I feel I'm being completely honest on this. Best of all they induce in me a very emotional reaction to music - it simply appears as Music, with real instruments, spaces, singers - vibes. The very low end of the bass is restricted(on paper), extension wise, and so may bother some, but in my room(20 square meters) they're very ample and sufficient.

Feel free to answer questions or otherwise comment on the above. I hope my post doesn't seem like a sales add, for this is not my intention. I only hope that some would be inspired, and seek out to know more of these speakers. As such, this is simply a very warm recommendation of them.

Best,
M
128x128phusis
krzycho
17 posts
 
Do you use SET to drive the Mummies?
phusis's avatar
phusis OP
1,203 posts
 
Krzycho -

Thanks for your interest.

No, a NuForce Stereo 8.5V3 poweramp is in use. I've circled the Almarro A318B and WLM Acoustics Sonata, both of which appear to be interesting matches with the Mummies, but I have no intention to replace the NuForce amp as is - save an upcoming V4 board upgrade that is said to be easily (and cheaply) implemented in the existing amp.

In fact I've only heard the Mummies via NuForce amps, in another setup through the 9V3SE mono's, so sadly I cannot extend my impressions of them beyond this (amp-)context.

Feel free to ask further questions.
reverendo
88 posts
 
M
interesting, especially taking the price factor into account. Will have a look at them.
Best regards
André
phusis's avatar
phusis OP
1,203 posts
 
André,

thanks for your interest.

I'll be adding a new D/A-converter to my setup next week, the NuForce DAC-9, and so I'll be glad to share some new impressions on the (total-)sound of my system once the DAC-9 has been broken in for a couple hundred hours - should you or others have any interest in this.

The Mummies are of a rather "morphing" sonic nature - depending much on the source material(both the specific recordings of music and particularly the DAC) as well as the remainder of the system - and so the addition of a new source component brings with it a substantial change/improvement in sound quality. This goes for all speakers/systems to varying degrees, but the Mummies are more promptly "lay it all bare" than most speakers I've heard, to a point almost where I've been unsure what to attribute to the speakers and what not.

This is course makes it a bit difficult to come about their sonic signature/imprinting, even to the point of uncertainty, but what I feel can be said with certainty is their outspoken speed and transient capabilities, energy, dynamics, tightness, physicality, high level of resolution, transparency, and overall coherence. While this may leave the impression of a sound on the dry or lean side on the audio spectrum, I don't find this to be the case at all: they're actually very musical in making one react emotionally to a singular presentation; they're calm, clean, and effortlessly sounding, all presented through a holistic "framework" more or less, and they thrive with complex music especially just as the intensity with "simple" music(based on few instruments, voices, etc.) is very beguiling. Indeed: they go from sweet to being startlingly direct, if so required.

So, there's no real "drag" with these speakers, no excessive fat or curtain-effect to somehow sooth or restrain the sound being presented, no dynamic hindrance to speak of, and this rather prompt directness and honesty took a little while for me getting used to - that is, about an hour or so :) Beyond that point I just appreciated progressively the variation in presentation this brought and still brings with it, and I'm guessing this quality is the more intriguing being that they don't go by the wayside to become analytical as such.

Another aspect on the sound of the Mummies is their "fullness" especially upwards, i.e. from the the lower to central midrange and up, in the frequency band. I'm highlighting this trait being that they differ from many speakers in this regard, as I hear it, and this has the trademark of making voices, instruments and other sounds in this broad register appear with physicality, presence, and a wholeness that is rather "non-hifi" in nature, if you know what I mean? It's not airy treble - it's the higher (over-)tones of an instrument or voice placed in a (non-)space; it's not midrange - it's a voice or instrument that can be startlingly affecting in its powerful and direct presence. And so on...

Not to make the above sound like they're perfect speakers. They don't cover frequencies much below 45Hz(in-room I find they're more than sufficiently capable), and the very upper echelons may sound less extended than other alternatives. I'm guessing some would find the Mummies to be too direct and lacking "bloom," especially in both extremes of the frequency spectrum, which may give the impression of a presentation lacking a little air as well as warmth in the lower registers. To my ears though this is an appealing, or even "wise" balancing of the sound, leaning more towards naturalness than compromise; way too many speakers are muddled and slow from the lower midrange and downwards(in search for the last octave, not least) - severely affecting the overall energy, speed, and liveliness of the sound - and "air" in my ears very often translates into artifacts or a pleasing trait not found in real life non-amplified acoustical music - if that is a reference one believes important.

To sum up: the Mummies offer qualities at a very reasonable price that in my ears transcends "hifi" in many a respect, and so makes me appreciate music even more for what it is: a real and affecting event, even with an element of simplicity about it.

I hope this may add to my initial descriptions above, and why I feel these speakers are worth the mention.

Best,
M
More to discover